Struggle in Cyberspace: Fact and Friction on the World Wide Web

Abstract

The Internet and World Wide Web have transformed the way local cultures produce and maintain solidarity regarding what should be accepted as facts. These technologies provide a level playing field—it is no longer the case that those with the most massive resources will have the biggest audience. Indeed, many small sites command huge followings. The Internet and the Web allow for the quick dissemination of information, both false and true; unlike newspapers and other media outlets, there are often no quality control mechanisms on Web sites that would permit users to know what information is generally recognized fact and what is spurious. On the Internet and the Web, facts more easily escape from their creator's or owner's control and, once unleashed, can be bandied about. Groups that wish to control what is perceived as fact will find the Internet a threat. Those groups that hail competition between outlooks will welcome what the Web hath wrought.